Apple faces a fine for not paying employees

The California Supreme Court ruled that Apple knowingly defrauded its employees of millions of dollars. The company violated the law by refusing to reimburse Apple Store employees for portions of mandatory overtime when they had to submit to bag and iPhone checks upon leaving the workplace, according to the lawsuit. These practices were implemented by Apple as part of the fight against leaks and theft, and the checks took between five and twenty minutes. Every year, store employees accumulate several dozen unpaid hours in this way, which they should now be waiting for.

The company defended the checks by saying it was up to employees to bring a bag or luggage to work and whether to use an iPhone. According to the court, however, the reality of the 21st century is that workers take different bags to work, so Apple's argument that employees who do so must expect checks due to a higher interest is not defensible.

The court also stated that the claim that Apple employees must expect checks on their iPhones when they decide to use it is ironic and directly contradicts CEO Tim Cook's claim in 2017. He said in an interview at the time that the iPhone has become so integrated and such an integral part of our lives that we can't even imagine leaving home without it.

According to the court, even after their working hours have ended and they have to submit to inspections, employees remain Apple employees because the inspections are for the benefit of the employer and the workers must conform to the instructions.

In California, this is already the umpteenth dispute of this kind in the last two years. In the past, prison workers, Starbucks, Nike Retail Services or even Converse have sued employers. In all cases, the court ruled in some form in favor of the employees, not the employers. A certain exception is a dispute between prisons and their employees, where the court ruled that guards are entitled to overtime pay, but not employees bound by a collective agreement. In Apple's case, it's a class-action lawsuit by 12 Apple Store workers who were required to submit to these inspections from July 400/July 25 until now.